Daniel Sharif (’27) and Partho Biswas (’27) are two-time class presidents, leading the Class of 2027 in both their sophomore and junior years. For senior year, they will be stepping down from their role and letting a new pair of students take on the role of class president. With that being said, what did they do as class presidents, and what lessons do they leave for the Class of 2027’s senior class presidents and the future HSMSE community?

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Note: Vihaan Parikh (’27) acted as an additional representative to Daniel and Partho.

Isaac Kim: Daniel, Partho, what motivated you to be class president? 

Daniel Sharif: We wanted to help our constituents … we noticed [problems] freshman year. And we wanted to make sure everyone has a fair shot.

IK: Mm-hmm. What kind of problems did you see?

DS: Many, like, administrative problems, maybe, like … communication.

Vihaan Parikh: Their original plan was to just aim at … problems inside the school. But, later on, they were just looking at problems outside of the school so they could prevent them from even happening. 

IK: [Do] you have any examples of that? 

PB: You look outside the school, there’s all [the] Wi-Fi problems. 

IK: So Wi-Fi and all that stuff?

PB: You had to look at all the Manhattan high schools. We’re part of this thing called the Manhattan Student Advisory Council; we recently joined [it], [and] we’re seeing more problems are happening outside of schools. A big image is communication in general … [and] Funding and budgeting for clubs [and] events.

IK: So what do you think is the current situation with PTA clubs and what do you think can be improved on [in] that [aspect]?

PB: I heard that some clubs don’t get reimbursements or just funding in general, which is a problem. But some [other] clubs do. So I think it’s also just another thing about communication. How clubs [can] effectively communicate [with] the PTA or [administration] in order to receive whatever assistance [they] need. 

IK: [To Daniel] According to Partho, one of those problems you guys have been focusing on is PTA club relations and seeing how you can get better funding for clubs and more communication. So can you list off some of the [actions] you’ve been doing for that kind of [area]? 

DS: So we’re trying to make [a] student government [to] include more of the student body. And we had multiple meetings [with] Mr. Dolcy and Ms. Engelhardt last year. We have everything drafted up. 

[However], sometimes in a bureaucracy, even when it gets the last check, even when Dolcy approved, sometimes, stuff doesn’t come to fruition. That’s the way life is, they’re very busy. We like stuff to happen, it’s hard, you know? So it’s honestly one of the limitations that we learned early on. And that’s why we ran for re-election. We ran on the premise that expectations don’t always meet reality. 

IK: That seems pretty smart. So, what do you think is the most important thing that you’ve learned as president? Is it about learning that sometimes, you can’t always meet reality? 

DS: Yeah, that’s a big lesson. 

PB: Yeah, just add on to that, like … sometimes, everything that we want doesn’t happen because that’s not how things work, right? So another big lesson I have, I think, [as] president, is that … you would have to be committed. I say, just going to leadership electives? That’s not enough. If you gotta do things, you work outside of it. So, no, we have a big election coming up, [for] senior class presidents. Daniel and I, we’re not running, so DP out. An endorsement is coming soon. 

IK: So, Daniel and Partho, are there any messages you have for future HSMSE students?

PB:
By sophomore year,
be prepared. If you procrastinate right now, don’t procrastinate anymore. Be on top of it.
If you want to do programs as a freshman, I would say, as someone that did programs early, that you should, [too]. Whatever you find, do it. 

Sophomores: You’re going to your junior year, you’re going to know what track you’re in. If you’re in Mount Sinai, congrats, you’re [going to] have fun. If [you’re in] another track, you’re also [going to] have fun. Then be on top of it.

 For my people, for my grade? Let’s just have fun.
Let’s lock in for college, get into the colleges we want to. 

For the current seniors, we’ll miss you guys. 

IK: You mentioned that Wi-Fi was one of your policies [in your campaign speeches] for sophomore year and junior year. But you also mentioned that … expectations can’t always be reality. 
Is there anything you think we can do in the future about the Wi-Fi or do you think that’s something that’s going to be contentious with CCNY?

PB: That’s still a DOE responsibility. As I said before, Daniel and I are part of the Manhattan Borough Student Advisory Council. Our supervisor … has a high leading rank in the DOE. We’re talking to him about how we can get better Wi-Fi.

IK: You are at Mount Sinai, so how are you as a Mount Sinai person working in leadership as president? What are your presidential duties like? 

PB: It’s definitely harder because I’m not in the Leadership elective anymore, but sometimes I would go there during my lunch period to see what’s up. See if I can help. 

Let’s say you’re like a current sophomore [who wants] to be a president. And you’re going to Sinai? 
You have to consider that. Is it a good fit if you want to become a president and do Sinai? But for me, I think it’s a great fit, so if you are in that position like me, you really have to be on top of it outside of school. 
That’s what I’m talking about. You got to be dedicated to this. 

IK: Do you do your presidential duties more asynchronously compared to Daniel? 

PB: [We] still communicate with each other. So it’s not like I’m completely doing stuff outside of him. 
We can just call at home, do some stuff together. Maybe something I had to do a little bit by myself, but yeah. IK: Daniel, how’s an average day of leadership as president like, for you? Can you give me a rundown of your average day in leadership? 

DS: Yeah, so I get into leadership, I sit down, Mr. Tirado starts talking about the future events, oasis week is what’s on the agenda right now. So then I work, I brainstorm, I work on all that and I make sure that everything is planned. Right now, [I’m] working on the barbecue for Oasis week and we’re just brainstorming. 
And sometimes, we make it fun. So we talk about school, especially now the APs are coming up, and that’s really about it. What the student body wants. 


IK: All right. Well, thank you, Daniel, Partho, [and Vihaan].